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Half-baked late night thoughts on Republican temper tantrums vs Democrat earnest emotions. They were all there and shared an enormously traumatic experience barely a month ago. But to toe the Trump line, Reps. can't acknowledge that the events were that bad.
Though there are disparities in levels of decency, ethical conduct and moral fibre, all of them are still human beings and traumatic experience are stressful on all of us, physically and mentally. The body keeps the score, and all that.
But to justify maintaining loyalty to Trump, the Republicans need to not only complete enormous feats of mental gymnastics, they also can't really show any outward signs or admission of having been through something intensely traumatic.
We've seen some heartful and emotional speeches from Democrats about their personal, terrifying, heart-wrenching, unimaginable experiences on that day. They are recognising their trauma, their humanity and the journey to make sense of it all and navigate their PTSD.
Republican senators went through the same experiences that day, but coming from a conservative, right-wing, all-emotions-are-weak-and-for-little-girls background already makes acknowledging trauma (a necessary part of healing) a taboo thing.
We're seeing plenty of downplaying of Trump's role in the insurrection, of the seriousness of the events of Jan 6th, and warping of the narrative so they can justify devotion to a man who never bothered to learn most of their names.
Lindsey Graham today tried to shift the blame onto the Capitol police. Implying there is weakness among them, that maybe protestors wouldn't have breached the building if the police had been strong or tried harder or shown up in greater numbers.
The point to which I'm meandering is not that Republicans are necessarily deserving of sympathy, especially given the falsehoods they're peddling to themselves and the public, but I feel like their tantrums make a bit more sense from a trauma-informed perspective.
They're not allowed to be sad, scared or shaken (weakness) they're not allowed to acknowledge they were in danger and their lives were at risk (gotta downplay events so it's easier to give Trump a free pass) but that trauma doesn't go away just because they ignore it.
The example they've been set, and the false idol they serve has long since decreed that anger is synonymous with strength and is therefore the only emotion it's ever valid to show. So all that trauma that desperately needs to be expressed is bursting out as petty tantrums.
Thinking about it this has basically been the case for conservatives - public and politicians alike - since time immemorial. But it's laid especially bare at the moment with the conflict between their minds and bodies desperately in need of healing, vs the line they have to toe.
They can't take the stand, bare their souls and shed a tear for the family members who were on the hill with them that day and subjected to that same trauma. They can't really acknowledge that what they experienced was trauma at all.
What they can do, the only release valve they have for all of this stress, cortisol and internalised conflict is to stew in rage and launch angry, petty outbursts at inappropriate moments over perceived slights.
All that said, don't feel too bad for them. They have affordable access to some of the best mental healthcare in the world whether through work or their own private wealth. The people traumatised by Republican policies and actions will mostly have no such luxury.
And it's very much a prison of their own making. Literally nothing other than a compromising photo here or the contact details of a mistress there are keeping them from doing the right thing when all's said and done at the end of this trail.
My aim isn't "give them sympathy", it's not an emotional plea at all that I'm making. Just something about which I was curious that fell into place and really solidified listening to the way the last couple of days have played out.
Given the horrors that conservative politics have wrought on this planet throughout modern history, it is entirely acceptable to have a bit of a laugh at grown men having playground shouty-times because they think it's gay or whatever to regulate their own emotions/tone.
